Chapter 571: Winter Blackbird (1/2)

Morti huffed his black nose at the tiny ring. ”That definitely won't fit, Nix.”

Nix pursed his lips slightly. ”You may be right. How about if I pierced your ear and you could wear it there?”

Morti shook his big head. ”I don't wanna.”

”I see... I could pierce your nose. Nose rings are really popular nowadays.”

Morti's big paw covered his nose. ”That's scary.”

Nix nodded in agreement. ”How about if I use it as an enchantment for your new Battle Harness?”

Ring: Winter Sparrow (Black Ice)

Description: This is the Ice Queen's

favor. A unique sparrow constructed from Black Ice.

”Is it a small bird?”

Nix nodded. ”Very small; you remember the Ice Sparrow I had?”

”Yep. Can you make those too?”

”Unfortunately, no, it's a unique skill that Shi has developed.”

[Summons: Winter Sparrow]

[Please Choose User Mode]

1) Command

2) Control

[Control]

Nix held the tiny bird in the palm of his hand; its black feathers sparkled in the Haven sun. ”Try to inhabit it, like you would a regular puppet.”

Morti flopped down on the ground and waited while Nix placed it on the ground in front of him. He stared at the bird for a moment and then closed his eyes. A second later, the bird made a tiny hop. ”My nose is huge.”

Nix lay his palm out and waited until the bird hopped on. ”It looks good on you. Why don't you try flying around.”

”Your nose is huge too... I think we look a little alike.” The bird flapped its wings a few times. ”What if I break it?”

”You can't really. I got eaten once in Parliament. while using the Winter Sparrow, I can resummon it once the timer resets.” Nix stifled a yawn. ”I need some sleep, have some fun with this, Morti.”

***************

2300 hours, Turtle House in Haven

A weight on the bed caused Nix to stir several hours later; he opened his eyes when soft lips touched his. Fajii's brown face smiled at him.

”You asked me to wake you in time for the Barrot Raid.” Fajii gripped his hand and pulled back until he managed to sit up. ”Maybe you should sit this one out?”

Nix shook his head to clear the cobwebs. ”Nope! Let's go wack that guy; then I can go back to sleep.”

Fajii stood up, keeping an eye on him until he placed his feet on the floor. ”Alpha and Bravo are at the Safarza War Camp.”

Nix nodded and started equipping his gear. ”Did Vooni and Sinfaya return?”

”They're at the TOC; you have time to drop in before the raid starts.”

Nix created a Breach to the TOC and stepped through; Sharl, Milat, and Zhava were standing around the large map with Vooni and Sinfaya. The Dragon had his Ravager puppet in one hand. ”Give me a quick brief.”

Vooni pointed to the mark on the map just to the north of Cyphix. ”It's like you said, every kill is feeding it, but that's not all.”

Sinfaya did something with the hud control, causing the map to zoom in much closer than it normally would. ”It's actually a spatial gate, a prison of sorts. There is definitely something very strong on the other side.”

Nix's face was expressionless; he had already guessed as much. ”A planar boss?”

Sinfaya nodded. ”We've already received reports that the Titans are facing something similar in Everspire.”

Nix accepted his Ravager puppet from the dragon. ”Anything else?”

”Yes. It's pretty complicated spatial magic, the local kills act as the key to the gate, but if you fail to kill the planar boss, the gate will rerelease them.”

Nix frowned suddenly and checked the time. ”Basically, losing means that we have to restart the entire process from day one. And if we win?”

Vooni smiled at him. ”That's the good news, the gate will be eradicated, and Colonial will be cleared.”

Nix opened a breach to the Sarfarza War Camp. ”Still in contact with your old team?”

Vooni nodded. ”Shall I activate them?”

”Yes, unless they are tasked with other things. Let's get the band back together.” Nix stepped through the Breach a moment later, leaving Sharl to explain what that meant.

The War Camp was bristling with activity when Nix arrived a moment later. Tent City was now packed with occupants as all the mid-tier guilds were racing to grind Howlers before Inferno came in and killed the boss. Nix could hear the murmurs as he walked past the Quartermaster Tent.

”That's the Inferno Leader; that means they're going now!”

”Let's shift to another War Camp.”

”He doesn't look like much, bet I could take him.”

Commander Mtui stepped out of the Quartermaster tent and fell in step with Nix as he walked toward the staging area. ”Breach Commander meeting tomorrow Nix.”

Nix's felt his lips widen in a grin. ”The rest of the Commander's going to join the fight?”

Mtui nodded. ”We're meeting tomorrow at my office in Solomon City. Make sure to bring those Ghost peppers.”

[Whisper: Darsi to Nix] On your six, Trip-7.

Nix glanced over one shoulder and spotted the Inferno Sniper; she was accompanied by Dalton and Moki, both former Gladis Hub members.

[Whisper: Nix to Darsi] Got a sniper nest set up?

[Whisper: Darsi to Nix] Yes. We set up at max range. Once you guys start rolling, we'll add some dps.

The raid group was all standing around a fire, talking in a relaxed manner while waiting for the fight to start.

/Inferno: Jun Li: Looks like Nix is here. Here are the groups for the raid. As you can see, we're DPS heavy and light on heals.

Nix: CC, Range/Melee DPS

Chiba: Melee DPS

Beta: Melee DPS

Rabi: Melee DPS

Wind: Melee DPS